Taylor Swift announces new album 'The Life of a Showgirl' in surprise reveal
The singer revealed her 12th studio album on social media, with a sneak peek to be revealed on the 'New Heights' podcast
Taylor Swift on Tuesday (August 12) revealed her 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl, in a surprise announcement that sent fans into a frenzy.
The reveal came in dramatic fashion, as a countdown clock on her official website struck 12:12 am Eastern.
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Swift's new album
In a video posted on Instagram, giving a sneak peek into her upcoming appearance on Travis Kelce’s New Heights podcast, co-hosted with his brother Jason Kelce, Swift pulled out a mint-green briefcase marked with her initials “TS” in orange.
“This is my brand new album,” she said, holding a blurred-out version of the album cover.
Swift did not disclose a release date or further details, leaving fans to wait for the full reveal during her much-anticipated New Heights podcast episode, set to air on Wednesday (August 13) at 7 pm (1100 GMT).
The announcement came just a day after Swift posted a carousel of 12 photos on Instagram, captioned, “Thinking about when she said ‘See you next era…’”, sparking speculation among fans.
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Surprise announcement
The surprise announcement coincided with a reveal Monday night that Swift would join Travis Kelce, her boyfriend and Kansas City Chiefs football player, and his brother for an episode of New Heights after teasing that a “VERY special” guest was joining Wednesday’s episode.
This marks Swift’s first new album since wrapping her record-breaking Eras Tour in December. Her previous release, The Tortured Poets Department (2024), broke Spotify’s record for the most-streamed album in a single day.
According to her website, The Life of a Showgirl will be available for pre-order in vinyl, cassette, and CD formats, with the official release date of the album to be announced later.
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Full creative control
The new album will be Swift’s first release since gaining complete ownership of her entire music catalogue, roughly six years after protesting the sale of her master recordings by her former label.
In May, Swift announced she had bought back her music from Shamrock Capital, the private equity firm that acquired her master recordings.
“To say this is my greatest dream come true is actually being pretty reserved about it,” she wrote, adding that the purchase was made “outright with no strings attached, no partnership, full autonomy.”